Mazda 2 road tests and consumer car reviews

Mazda 2 1.6 TD SPORT 2009

Having bought the car brand new 2 years ago I have found the build quality to be not great, but the economy is excellent at 60 plus mpg. Then at about 11750 miles we noticed a juddering when braking so returned it to the supplying dealer, who diagnosed warped discs. To my disappointment they would not replace the discs, but would only skim them. The car has now only done 16000 miles and the discs are warped again, surprise, surprise! They are going to skim them again, this is after I have been in contact with Mazda UK, who say "if they are within tolerance we only skim them". What a load of rubbish! The car is only used for the normal commuting type driving so the brake discs must be made of monkey metal. I’m not a very happy owner and Mazda it seems don’t give a fig.

Mazda 2 2011

I love driving this car, however after less than 6 months I have somehow accumulated 30+ paint chips that are down to the metal with rust starting to show already. The paint on these vehicles appears to be extremely poor quality. Beware your car may not look new for long.

Responses to this review

Thanks for the heads up, Erin! I was about to plunk down my money for one. I will now look elsewhere. Thanks again - George from Kent

Mazda 2 Sports 2010

My car is due is for it’s first service this month and I can honestly say that I have really enjoyed this car. I have previously owned sports car, but found their upkeep really expensive. This little beauty gives me all the fun of a sports car but with an added bonus of really good mpg, excellent road holding and of course space to carry things and more than 1 passenger.

Mazda 2 Sedan 2009

Very hot car.

Mazda 2 Tamura 2011

Just bought my 2nd Mazda 2, first was a sport and have just bought a tamura. Both cars brilliant, Tamura doesn’t have the sports power but still nippy. The sport has just coped easily with Scotland’s worst two winters on record, my new tamura looks great and handles great. I would recommend a Mazda 2 to anybody looking to buy a small, reliable, good looking, economical supermini. Forget Fiesta, Corsa or Clio, get a Mazda 2.

Mazda 2 Tamura 1.3 2009

I’ve had my Tamura for a year and it is fantastic little run around. Its stylish and comfortable and safe, with a good boot capacity and plenty of room for the people sitting in the back. Its actually quite big for a little car. I wish it had a little bit more power on the motorway as one can be seen chanting motivational cheer at it to speed up evertime one joins the motorway. Its lightness can be an issue on snow/ice though even at crawling speed. overall a fantastic car.

Mazda 2 5 door base 2009

Bought mine in 2009 and so far no major complaints. Good fuel economy overall 50mph for the 1.3. petrol. A good all round drive. Stylish looks. Could do with better trim and can be a little noisy at speed but safe handling and braking. Service from dealer has been 1st. class so far. Would recommend as a low cost fun car.

Mazda 2 TS2 1.3 Petrol 2009

We’ve owned this car for 6 months now and overall we are very pleased with it. We have had no mechanical problems whatsoever with it and the fuel economy is about 46mpg. Not quite the mpg they claim but still not bad. The only real issue we have is the drivers vision is a bit obscured to the right due to the large airbag buffer which is sometimes a problem. However, the car is only 1 year old so fingers crossed it stays as good as it has began.

Mazda 2 1.3 Tamura 5dr 2009

Far and away the best car I have ever owned and I have owned a fair few, some better than others. Looks superb with the sports bodykit and limited edition 16" anthracite alloys, good power to weight ratio considering it’s only a 1.3, excellent handling, superb economy, what more could you want? Reliability? Bulletproof, owned for a year and no, I repeat no problems (a welcome 12 month holiday after the Fiat it replaced and the Corsa that needed major engine surgery and a gearbox overhaul at 35k). To top it off the first service came in at £111.00 when I was expecting much worse. Really cannot complain superb little car and I would recommend it to anyone, nice finishing touches right down to the two sets of RCL keys instead of one and a dummy spare, little things that make all the difference. The finance deals aren’t bad either, you pretty much can’t afford not to buy one in my view.

Mazda 2 TS2 1.4 diesel 2008

I agree that this car is a very good urban car. It is very economical, fuel goes a long way plus all other expenses are to a minimum. My tax is down to £20 a year! Just because it is economical it does not necessarily mean it can not move. Despite it taking almost 16 seconds to reach 60mph it does nip around town pretty well providing you stay in the right rev range. Long distance driving is good too, at its top speed it behaves well and does not feel at all shakey. My only criticism is the urban set steerin is a little sensitive at the top speed but nothing a steady hand can’t keep in check. Overall the Mazda 2 is a fun car to drive around town (as long as it is not weighed down too much, where it can then seem lethargic). The lack of power is over shadowed by the very low overall running cost coupled with the fresh styling. These two factors along with a 5star safety rating makes this a very good buy.

Responses to this review

"My tax is down to £20 a year!" Ben, I own a Mazda 2 TS2 diesel (2003) and my tax, due this month, is £90. Is there an explanation? Chris Binks from England

Mazda 2 ts2 1.4 diesel 2009

Good fuel economy from this car and that’s about it I’m afraid. After owning for 2 months, an extremely annoying rattling noise started coming from the passenger side dashboard. Local Mazda dealer didn’t want to know and said that they "didn’t repair rattles in dash". Left up to me to locate source of noise. After weeks of sitting in the passenger seat while someone else drove I finally found the culprit...a very large loose piece of plastic which was held on by 3 plastic clips situated behind the glovebox. I removed this plastic (after taking out the glovebox) and no more rattle. Car now 9 months old and one of the diesel injectors has just failed!! Not good enough in a car that has only covered 5000 miles. No car for nearly a week. Very poor customer service from Mazda dealer and a poorly put together vehicle. I will never buy a Mazda again......be warned.

Mazda 2 Sport 2009

Good quality, well built car, good all round vision. Driven in town, able to squeeze 43 mpg out of tank. Due to lightness of car it was not able to cope with 3 inches of laid snow on untreated roads in winter. Could do with being fitted with outside air temperature sensor. Engine performance means no worries entering large roundabouts.

Responses to this review

Do not agree with driving in the snow. My Mazda2 handled Scotland’s worst 2 winters on record easily. Drove to work in it after 10 inches of snow fell. Great car - G. Bryson from Lanarkshire

I have had my Mazda 2 Sport for two years now. It is the worst car I have ever driven in the snow. It got stuck so many times I ended up leaving it in the garage. The rest of the year without snow is fine and a fun car - Chris Pygall from England

Mazda 2 ts2 diesel 2009

What a poor, poor car, the diesel is useless at 1.4, I get no where near the figures given at 70 try 53mpg that’s Brisrol Street Motors driving it. At 50 mph I got 62mpg?? Mazda’s answer? The car was tested, no fault found so live with it. I bought a new Citroen Berlingo van and get close to 47mpg all the time so can’t be my driving. My advice is save your money and buy a different make. It’s a shame as the car is generally good.

Responses to this review

Nonsense - G. Bryson from Lanarkshire

Mazda 2 1.4 TS 2005

We bought this car in November 2007 it was low mileage. Without doubt it is the best car I have ever had; the practicality of a Honda Jazz without appearing as common as every other car on the road. It’s ride, handling, economy are all superb. The only problem that it has always had is difficulty closing the drivers electric window from morning start up’s, it has to be gingerly coaxed to close or will auto open again, Once closed the problem doesn’t occur again until the following morning start up(?) The bright red paintwork never fails to dazzle when cleaned. I don’t see how the newer car of the year Mazda 2 can be markedly more economical? Our’s being more practical is often fully laden complete with loaded roof box mounted on the car’s roof rails no matter if laden or not 400 miles per tank full never varies (approx 45-50mpg) had no rust problems as in the other review here. Wish Mazda would re-introduce it as a 2 mini MPV as we have no idea what car could possibly replace it and tick so many boxes.

Mazda 2 1.4 D TS2 2003

I had no reservations at all about buying this 2003 model car recently as the Autocar review stated: "Made by Ford in Spain the Maza 2 offers Mazda reliabilty with Ford durabilty", and I have to totally agree with that because even though this car has covered very high milage (over 160,000!) it was still in immaculate condition inside and out and it drives like new!!! It came "fully loaded" and even has dark "privacy glass" on the rear and rear side windows which makes it look even cooler. I paid just £1900 for mine which is an amazing bargain and very cheap Group 3 insurance and Group C Tax at £35 a year, makes my buy even sweeter! I’d recommend this car to anyone in a heartbeat.

Mazda 2 1.4 Diesel Auto 2004

Unlike the latest Mazda 2, this car is roomy and practical. The build quality and reliability has been very disappointing though. This car has only covered 12000 miles in 4 years and has been serviced by the main dealer from new. In its 3rd year, just out of warranty, the front suspension collapsed due to the coil springs rusting through. This could have been fatal, but Mazda were not very interested. Today, the exhaust has fallen off due to rusting through. Despite the low mileage rust is much in evidence on the underside and on the wheels. We previously owned a Volkswagen Polo for 10 years and it stayed immaculate throughout its life. The Mazda is of very poor quality by comparison and the latest version is smaller than the previous model so we wont be buying another!!

Mazda 2 TS2 2008

Great car, handles really well, superb grip, best looking car in class and gains envious looks from other supermini drivers - mainly Corsa owners ;). Nice driving position and has a quality feel to the controls, fuel consumption is really good if you drive normally. Feel the car is roomy for it’s size and the engine quite and refined but feel the ride is a little firm and road roar on poor surfaces could be improved,this maybe common on most cars with low profile tyres? I’m thinking of adding some extra soundproofing to boot and floorpan. Overall though I’m more than happy with the Mazda and really look forward to every journey in it.

Mazda 2 1.3 75 TS 5dr 2007

Lovely little car that feels nippy around town and on the open road. Some nice little storage touches in the cabin and a really nice dash layout; the gearstick is especially well placed and makes for very comfortable driving. A great looking car for the money and low emissions mean it’s cheap to run and makes you feel less guilty about polluting the environment. A slightly bigger boot would be nice but it’s not a bad size.

Mazda 2 TS2 2007

Very nice little car. The demo car I test-drove a couple of times was not as nippy as the one I have now finally bought. Why that is, I don’t know. The car is excellent for speeds up to 60-70mph but lacks a bit of punch to make for a truly enjoying long-journey-kind of car. It is quick off the mark, especially when you work the throttle and rev up a bit. You might have to switch down from 5th gear to 4th when you want to accelerate a bit quicker, which is fine by me as I don’t really need the car for that. I like the looks and the feel of the car. It takes the corners much better than my old W-reg Punto which rolled a lot more. Good car for what you pay, and good car overall anyway really. I am very pleased.

Mazda 2 1.3 86 TS2 5dr Hatchback 2007

Very nippy car. Looks great. Well equipped and well put together. Really cheap to run and insure yet looks a more expensive car than it really is. Have had mine only 2 months and already I love it! There does seem to be a lot of external noise though, which I’d say is the only thing that lets this car down but everything else certainly makes up for this.